(Re)Translating as Re-membering

Abstract

This paper explores how (re)translation – interlingual and intersemiotic – can be perceived as a way of both remembering the literary legacy of other cultures but also as a way of re-membering/re-generating the body of literature(s) of the importing culture. It focuses on what is called “a classic” and anchors its reflexion in polysystem theory and in the metaphorical vision of literary works as an organic living body. To do so, it concentrates on the British literary classic Oliver Twist and its translations and adaptations into French. The article addresses the following questions: What is to be remembered of certain works? Why, how and by whom are those works remembered?